Dish Network “Cautiously Optimistic” About Carriage Talks With Disney

Dish chairman Charlie Ergen had little new to report about his company’s negotiations for a broad, long-term deal to carry ABC, ESPN and other Disney-owned channels. “It’s taken longer than any of us would like,” he said in a call to discuss his company’s Q4 earnings — adding that he’s “cautiously optimistic” they’ll have a deal before his company’s next quarterly conference call. There’s been no material change in the discussions, “just changes in technology and what might happen. Slight changes in strategy. It’s just a complex deal trying to look out into the future.” But he’s encouraged because Disney CEO Bob Iger, as a member of Apple’s board, “has looked at it in ways that others have not.”